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It's no secret that Lego bricks have become the go-to medium for many geeks who want to build detailed replicas of characters, vehicles and environments from their favorite fantasy and sci-fi franchises. However, few geeks use Lego to build replicas of franchise toys that were planned by toy companies but never made it past the prototype stage. On the other hand, there's BaronSat (a.k.a. Eric Duron), who designs Lego kits for franchises that are both licensed and not licensed by Lego. For Star Wars, he has already provided instructions for Lego-scale replicas of toys that were made by Kenner during the original trilogy, toys such as the Imperial Troop Transporter , the Imperial Attack Base , and the Death Star World sets from Kenner's short-lived Micro Collection line. His latest kit is based on the unreleased part of the Death Star World: the Emperor's Throne Room from Return of the Jedi . The story behind this toy is that after Kenner released its initial wave of Mi...

Since I've been a fan of the Star Wars franchise since its debut in 1977, it was my personal responsibility (or perhaps a mandatory requirement in my Lifetime Commitment to Geekery contract) to see the latest installment, The Force Awakens (a.k.a. Episode VII ), as soon as possible after it was released last month. So far, I've seen it twice already--once on a regular movie screen and once in the IMAX format--and while it's a fun movie, it's the only Star Wars film that left me feeling underwhelmed. Lucas may have felt that Disney would be an ideal home for his franchise after he sold it back in 2012, but its latest live-action contribution to the saga felt like it lost its spirit of fantasy when compared to the other movies. This post isn't a review of Force Awakens as much as it is a look back at Star Wars as a whole, what the new movie means in that context, and speculation of what Disney era of the franchise will look like in the years to come. Read on ... At ...

As we move closer to December, more and more details about the long-awaited Star Wars, Episode VII: The Force Awakens have found their way on to the Internet. Some of have arrived in the form of production stills and preview footage, while others came through teaser photos of tie-in toys. Among those toys is a name that hasn't appeared much since the '90s: Micro Machines. According to recent news, one of the first Force Awakens toys will be a Micro Machines play set that features miniatures of characters, vehicles and locations from the upcoming sequel, a play set that folds into a replica of the Millennium Falcon. This post will look at the Micro Machines line of Star Wars toys during the '90s. Even though this line made its debut long after Kenner stopped making Star Wars toys, Micro Machines produced some of the most detailed and affordable replicas of the saga's numerous vehicles. Read on ... Galoob's Micro Machines didn't start as a licensed toy line whe...

A 725 Erector set. Between the number of licenses it has acquired over the years and its expansion into other mediums such as video games, TV shows and movies, Lego is frequently identified as the go-to construction toy for building things both simple and complex. Because of Lego's dominance, it's easy to forget the many, many other construction toys that have appeared throughout the last few decades. These toys, such as Lincoln Logs and Tinkertoys, took different approaches to the concept of creative play, proving that interlocking plastic bricks aren't the only way for kids to make something fun. This post is about my experience (and lack of experience) with one of the more sophisticated construction toys, the Erector sets. Erector sets were originally produced by the A.C. Gilbert Company and designed to emulate the tools and materials used in mechanical construction. While they may lack the name recognition of Lego, Erector sets have been providing hours of sturdy, nuts-...